Pakistani Fighter Jet Shot Down In Jalalabad, Pilot Captured Alive; Pakistan Calls Claim 'Totally Untrue'

A Pakistani fighter jet crashed in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, on Saturday after Afghan forces shot it down. Police spokesman onfirmed pilot was captured alive. Residents reported seeing the pilot parachute from the aircraft. Pakistan denied the claims. 

A Pakistani fighter jet crashed in Jalalabad city on Saturday, officials in Afghanistan said. Police spokesman Tayeb Hammad said Afghan forces shot down the aircraft in the city’s sixth district. He confirmed the pilot was captured alive. Pakistan however denied the claims made by Afghan authorities. 

Pakistan’s foreign ministry has rejected claims by Afghan authorities that a Pakistani jet was shot down and its pilot captured. Speaking to AFP, ministry spokesman Tahir Hussain Andrabi said the reports were completely false. He stated that the claim made by Afghan military and police officials was 'totally untrue' and did not reflect the real situation.

Afghan Police on detaining pilot

Afghan police spokesman Tayeb Hammad said a Pakistani fighter jet was brought down in the sixth district of Jalalabad and the pilot was taken alive. Military spokesman Wahidullah Mohammadi also confirmed Afghan forces shot down the aircraft and detained the pilot.

An AFP journalist in the city reported hearing a jet overhead, followed by two explosions near the airport area.

Residents told AFP they saw the pilot parachute from the plane before he was detained by Afghan authorities. Wahidullah Mohammadi, spokesman for the military in eastern Afghanistan, also confirmed the jet belonged to Pakistan and that Afghan forces brought it down. 

A day earlier, Pakistan carried out air strikes in Kabul and Kandahar, where Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada is based. The strikes came after Afghan forces began a border operation against Pakistan, which the Taliban government said was in response to earlier Pakistani attacks.

(With inputs from agencies)